


happy birthday

by harleenquinzel



Category: Skins (UK)
Genre: Beaches, Birthday, Child Abandonment, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-27
Updated: 2013-09-27
Packaged: 2017-12-27 19:27:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/982705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harleenquinzel/pseuds/harleenquinzel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>jal's eighth birthday quickly turns into the worst day of her short life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	happy birthday

To anyone else, it was just another March day. But for Jal Fazer, it was the best day of the year. It was her eighth birthday, and her mum had decided to let the little girl skip school for the day. After all, you only turn eight years old once, and any occasion that only happens one time is worthy of a celebration. Jal didn't know what her mum had in store for her, but she figured that it had to be brilliant.

“Jalander, what would you say if the two of us went on an adventure today?” Elaine asked her daughter over a breakfast of homemade French toast.

“Adventure?” Jal echoed, her brown eyes wide with the prospect of excitement.

Elaine laughed, seeing the look in her daughter’s eyes. “Yes, an adventure. I was thinking that the two of us could go to the beach today,” she said, looking at Jal, awaiting her reaction.

“Really? Really, really?” Jal asked, not believing her mother. She’d been begging for months to go to the beach, and every time she’d asked, her parents had shot her down, so she was skeptical of her mother’s proposition. 

“Yes, really, you silly girl. Go change out of your jim-jams and we’ll-” Elaine didn't even have to finish her sentence. Jal was already out of her chair and running up the stairs to her bedroom. While she waited for Jal to come back downstairs, Elaine picked at her French toast, turmoil bubbling inside of her.

* * *

It took nearly an hour and a little bit of getting lost, but eventually Elaine and Jal ended up at the beach. As the two of them got closer and closer to the beach, the smell of saltwater became stronger, and Jal got more and more excited. She couldn’t believe that she was finally getting to visit her favorite place in the entire world.

Almost as soon as her mum parked the car, Jal jumped out of the car. She was more than ready for the day’s adventure. Elaine grabbed her daughter’s hand, steering the little girl toward the pier that lead to the beach. Jal looked around, eyes wide, fascinated by the little shops and restaurants along the pier. Excitedly, she pointed at the carousel that was at the end of the pier.

“Mummy, can we please ride the carousel today?” Jal asked, looking up at Elaine.

“We’ll see,” her mum replied as she glanced toward the carousel. It was a homely thing. It looked as though it could fall apart any time now. The paint on the horses was chipped off in places, and the music sounded warped, as though someone had poured water into the speakers. It definitely wasn’t pretty, but it was still moving, so that had to say something.

Mother and daughter climbed down the steps at the end of the pier, feet touching sand. The March air was chilly, leaving them unable to go swimming, but Elaine let Jal run up and down alongside the water. Sitting down, Elaine watched her daughter, having the best day of her young life. Still, something felt wrong for Elaine. Any other parent would be enjoying a day like this, but she wasn’t. She’d never been able to. She knew she was supposed to be happy, but there had always been a strange disconnect, and lately, it had grown to be unbearable.

She knew what she was going to do, and that made her feel even worse.

Standing up, Elaine brushed sand off of her jeans. She stuck her hands in her pockets, watching as Jal splashed her polka dotted rain boots in the grey-colored water. After a few minutes, she called her daughter’s name, telling Jal she was allowed to ride the carousel.

“I’ll be waiting on that bench right there when you’re done,” Elaine nodded toward the designated bench on the boardwalk, pulling change out of her pocket. Placing a few coins in her daughter’s hands, she gently nudged Jal in the direction of the carousel. She’d given Jal enough money for a few rounds on the rickety old ride. Sitting on the bench, she watched as her daughter picked a horse. After a few moments, the carousel started up. She couldn’t help but notice the look of pure joy on Jal’s face as the carousel turned round and round. Biting her bottom lip, Elaine stood up, guilt gnawing at her. She couldn’t believe she was doing this, but she knew she had to. It was now or never, and she knew that there aren’t any second chances in life.

* * *

By the time Jal had exhausted all of the money she had been given to ride the carousel, her mother had been long gone. Jal didn’t know this, however. Instead, she walked over to the bench where her mother had promised she would be. The little girl quickly became confused when Elaine wasn’t sitting there. Even at eight years old, Jal knew that something wasn’t right. Still, she walked up and down the boardwalk, looking at every single bench, in search of her mum. She didn’t find her at any of the benches. She even went back to the carousel, wondering if her mum was waiting for her there. She wasn’t. Jal went back to the original bench and sat down, not knowing what to do.

Jal sat there for hours. The wind picked up and blew straight through her jacket, chilling her to her bone. She fought back tears the entire time. She knew her mum wasn’t coming back. She thought that she was going to be stuck on this beach for the rest of her life. She was scared. She didn’t know what to do. All of her short life, her parents had taught her to be afraid of strangers, so she was reluctant to go up to an adult and ask for help. So, she continued to sit on that dirty old bench, wishing for her mother to come back.

Eventually, a teenage couple walked up to her. She could hear the two of them talking as they approached her. The boy kept telling the girl that it was none of their business, that the little kid on the bench probably had some reason for being there. The girl called him a dirty word, and walked up to Jal anyway.

“Hey, there, sweetie. Do you know where your parents are?” The girl asked, crouching down so she was eye level with Jal.

“My mummy left me here,” Jal responded sadly, staring down at her feet.

“Oh… Er, do you know anyone we could call?” The girl asked.

“My daddy. He’s far away, though. He’s in America. But he knows lotsa people. I think he knows everyone in the entire world,” Jal said, looking up into the girl’s eyes, with a shrug.

“Well, maybe he know someone who can come take you home. Come on, let’s go call him for you,” the girl said, holding her hand out for Jal to take hold of. 

Jal debated on leaving the bench. What if her mum came back? The first place she would look would be right here. But… what if she didn’t? Eventually, Jal grasped the girl’s hand, and let the girl lead her to a payphone that was down the boardwalk. Jal gave the girl her dad’s phone number, and after five rings, he answered. The girl explained what had happened to his daughter, and Jal could hear her father cursing, his voice tinny over the phone.

Eventually, the phone call ended. The girl knelt down and said that her grandmother was going to come get Jal, but it would be a couple of hours. She then asked Jal if she was hungry, and Jal nodded. It had been a long time since she’d eaten her eggy bread that morning.

The girl took Jal to a little cafe where they shared chicken tenders and fries and waited for Jal’s grandmother. Jal kept staring out the window, looking at the bench where her mother had promised to be. She wanted to go back out there and wait for her mum there, but she knew that no one would allow her to. With a sigh, she continued to eat and wait.

* * * 

Eventually, Jal’s grandmother arrived at the beach to bring Jal home. On the car ride home, Jal stared out the window, drawing shapes in the condensation. Her grandmother talked about this and that, trying to make conversation, but Jal didn't pay attention. Her mind was far away, back on that stupid bench.

From her birthday and onward, Jal stayed up late each night, staring out of her bedroom window. She looked for her mum each night until she passed out from sheer exhaustion. She did this for months on end. Finally, reality took it’s toll and she realized that her mum was never coming back. When she finally realized this, Jal finally broke down and cried. She hadn’t cried that day at the beach, nor had she cried all those nights when she’d waited for her mother to come back. The emotions had been building up inside of her, and all at once, the dam broke.

* * * 

From that year on, Jal stopped celebrating her birthday. She pretended it was just another day, and never made a big deal about it. No one really questioned it, not even Michelle. All of her friends figured it was just a Jal thing. One person who had experienced many horrible things himself knew it wasn’t just a Jal thing, though. Many years after that horrible day at the beach, a hyperactive boy with a big heart broke down and asked Jal why she hated her birthday so much, and so began a beautiful friendship.


End file.
